Multi-piece closure with hinged lid

ABSTRACT

A closure for a fluid containing vessel comprises a base and a one-piece lid. The base has a sidewall and a shoulder formed at a top surface of the sidewall. A spout extends upward from the shoulder and has an opening formed in a top surface of the spout. The one-piece lid has a ring portion and a cover portion. A hinge portion connects the cover portion to the ring portion and allows the cover portion to move from a closed position to an open position. The hinge portion is disposed completely within an outer periphery of the ring portion with the cover portion in the closed position. The cover portion covers the opening in the top surface of the spout in the closed position to form a fluid tight seal between the base and the one-piece lid.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable.

FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to a closure for a fluid containing vessel. More specifically the present disclosure relates to a multi-piece closure for a fluid containing vessel that may be attached to the fluid containing vessel without regard to the orientation of the fluid containing vessel.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many fluid containing vessels, such as drink bottles and motor oil bottles, are provided with a spout or a nozzle that allows fluid within the bottle to be accessed by a user. The spout or nozzle is often covered by a closure with a lid or a flip-top lid. A user can access the contents of the container by moving the hinged lid from a closed position to an open position. A user can also provide a fluid tight seal for the container by moving the hinged lid back to the closed position. Such an application is particularly useful in certain beverage containing vessels, such as bottles for water, juices, sports drinks, or beverages for children, where a user may periodically desire access to the contents of the vessel, but also wishes to avoid spilling the contents of the vessel once the contents have been accessed.

Existing multi-piece closures often utilize a non-position memory strap to connect a cover portion of the lid to a ring portion of the lid. Additionally, the strap is connected to an exterior surface of a ring portion of the lid, and portions of the strap reside outside of a periphery formed by the ring portion. Therefore, when the lid is connected to the rest of the closure, i.e., by pushing the ring portion into a base, a particular orientation of the strap must be maintained relative to the assembly equipment which pushes the ring into the base to avoid potentially damaging the strap or having the strap interfere with operation of assembly equipment. This requires more complex assembly tooling that may increase the amount of time required to produce a completed closure and may further increase the cost to produce a closure. Additionally, manufacturing a strap which is connected to the exterior surface of the ring portion is difficult and may require a slidable mold piece on a separate axis in order to remove the lid piece from the mold. Therefore, a need exists for a closure with a lid that does not require circumferential orientation with respect to the to the assembly equipment during assembly, does not require a slidable mold piece, and can maintain access to the spout or nozzle with position memory when the hinge is in the open position.

Furthermore, as the existing hinged closure can be closed to form a fluid tight seal in the closed position even after being initially opened, it is often desirable to provide an optional tamper evident feature so that a user may determine if the closure has previously been opened. Many tamper evident features are disposed in a generally vertical direction between portions of the closure with a hinged lid, such that the tamper evident features deform or even break when a hinged lid is initially opened. Manufacturing a closure with such vertical features may also require slidable mold pieces or a costly secondary operation to the molding (i.e., slitting).

The present invention seeks to overcome certain of these limitations and other drawbacks of the prior art, and to provide new features not heretofore available. A full discussion of the features and advantages of the present invention is deferred to the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one embodiment, a closure for a fluid containing vessel comprises a base and a one-piece lid. The base has a sidewall and a shoulder formed at a top surface of the sidewall. A spout extends upward from the shoulder and has an opening formed in a top surface of the spout. The one-piece lid has a ring portion, a hinge portion and a cover portion. The hinge portion connects the cover portion to the ring portion and allows the cover portion to move from a closed position to an open position. The hinge portion is disposed completely within an outer periphery of the ring portion with the cover portion in the closed position. The cover portion covers the opening in the top surface of the spout in the closed position to form a fluid tight seal between the base and the one-piece lid.

According to another embodiment, a closure for a fluid containing vessel comprises a base portion and a lid portion. The base portion comprises a generally horizontal shoulder portion, a first generally vertical sidewall, a second generally vertical sidewall, and a securing groove. The generally horizontal shoulder portion has an outer periphery and an inner periphery. The first generally vertical sidewall extends in a first direction from the outer periphery of the shoulder portion. The second generally vertical sidewall extends in a second direction from the inner periphery of the shoulder portion. The second generally vertical sidewall terminates in a generally horizontal rim. The generally horizontal rim has an opening formed therein. The securing groove is disposed radially between the first generally vertical sidewall and the second generally vertical sidewall. The lid has a connecting ring having a periphery with a complimentary shape to the securing groove of the base portion and forms a friction fit within the securing groove. The cover portion has a hinged connection to the connecting ring. The cover portion is movable between a closed position and an open position. The hinged connection is disposed within the periphery of the connecting ring when the cover portion is in the closed position. The cover portion is disposed over the opening of the horizontal rim of the base portion. The connecting, ring, cover portion, and the at least one tamper evident feature form a single piece.

According to a further embodiment, a lid for a fluid containing vessel comprises a connecting ring, a cover portion, and a hinge. The connecting ring has a periphery with a generally circular shape. The cover portion is connected to the connecting ring by a hinge. The cover portion is movable between a closed position and an open position. The hinge forms between the connecting ring and the cover portion. The hinge is disposed within the periphery of the connecting ring when the cover portion is in the closed position.

Other features and advantages will be apparent from the following specification taken in conjunction with the following drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To understand the present invention, it will now be described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a closure for a fluid containing vessel according to one embodiment in a closed position;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the closure for a fluid containing vessel according to the embodiment of FIG. 1 in an open position;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken through lines 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top view of the closure for a fluid containing vessel according to the embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a detailed perspective view of a portion of the closure for a fluid containing vessel according to the embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a front view of a closure for a fluid containing vessel according to another embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the closure for a fluid containing vessel taken through lines A-A of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a view of the base portion of the closure for a fluid containing vessel of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a view of the lid portion of the closure for a fluid containing vessel taken of FIG. 7; and

FIG. 10 is a top view of the lid portion of the closure for a fluid containing vessel of FIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

While this invention is susceptible of embodiments in many different forms, there are shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail preferred embodiments of the invention with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the broad aspect of the invention to the embodiments illustrated.

FIGS. 1-5 depict a closure for a fluid containing vessel 10 according to one embodiment. The closure 10 comprises a base portion 12 and a lid portion 14. The base portion 12 comprises a first generally vertical sidewall 16 that descends from a shoulder portion 18. The shoulder portion 18 has an outer periphery 19, and an inner periphery 21 (FIG. 3). The first generally vertical sidewall 16 connects to the shoulder portion 18 at the outer periphery 19. A second generally vertical sidewall 20 ascends from the inner periphery 21 of the shoulder portion 18. The second generally vertical sidewall 20 terminates at a generally horizontal rim 23. The generally horizontal rim 23 has an opening 22 formed therein. The opening 22 allows fluid within a fluid containing vessel (not shown) that the closure 10 is disposed on to flow out of the fluid containing vessel. The base portion 12 may be threaded and function as a screw-on cap for a vessel. It is contemplated the base portion 12 may be a snap-on cap or be formed as part of the vessel or any other form.

The lid portion 14 comprises a connecting ring 24 and a cover portion 26 which are connected via a hinge 28. The connecting ring 24 is depicted as forming a complete circle in the embodiment of FIGS. 1-5, but it is contemplated that a partial circle may be utilized, or that a full or partial polygon may be utilized as the shape for the connecting ring 24. As shown in FIGS. 1-5, the lid portion 14 may be formed from a single piece of material, such as molded plastic.

The lid portion 14 is moveable from a closed position, as shown in FIG. 1, to an open position, as shown in FIG. 2. In the closed position, the lid portion 14 prevents fluid from exiting the opening 22 of the fluid containing vessel as a plug seal 36 (FIG. 3) which is disposed on the cover portion 26, being positioned to contact the opening 22 of the base portion to form an interference fit. It is contemplated that additional types of seals may also be formed between the lid portion 14 and the opening 22, such as, for example, a gasket, an o-ring, a blade seal, or the like.

As best viewed in FIG. 3, the base portion 12 has a securing groove 32 formed on the shoulder 18. The securing groove 32 is adapted to receive a connecting portion 34 of the connecting ring 24 of the lid portion 14. The connecting ring 24 has a generally complimentary shape to the securing groove 32 of the base portion. The securing groove 32 has a securing lip 33 that the connecting portion 34 of lid portion 14 interacts with to secure the connecting ring 24 to the base portion 12. As shown in FIG. 3, the connecting portion 34 is in the form of a tab, however, it is contemplated that other geometric arrangements may be utilized to secure the connecting portion 34 of the lid portion 14 to the securing groove 32 of the base portion 12, such as a friction fit or an interference fit. While the securing groove 32 is shown ascending from shoulder 18, it is additionally contemplated that the securing groove 32 may be a securing protrusion with a securing lip formed near the shoulder 18 that receives a portion of the connecting ring 24, or may be other types of connectors.

The cover portion 26 of the lid portion 14 additionally has an opening tab 30. The opening tab 30 is disposed on an opposite side of the lid portion 14 from the hinge 28. It is contemplated that the opening tab 30 may be positioned elsewhere on the lid portion 14. The opening tab 30 allows a user to more easily move the lid portion 14 from the closed position to the open position.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show a plurality of tamper evident features 38 disposed between the cover portion 26 and the connecting ring 24. The tamper evident features 38 are disposed in a generally horizontal plane. The tamper evident features 38 deform and/or disconnect as the cover portion 26 of the lid portion 14 is moved from the closed position to the open position. This provides visual evidence to a user that the lid portion 14 has been moved from its closed position and/or opened. Therefore, the user will know if the contents of the fluid containing vessel have been accessed by opening the lid portion 14 based upon the tamper evident features 38 being deformed, or no longer being connected to both the connecting ring 24 and the cover portion 26, even if the lid portion 14 has been returned to the closed position. The tamper evident features 38 may have a section with reduced width, such that the tamper evident features deform at the section with reduced width and generally the tamper evident features 28 will fail at the section with reduced width and thus disconnect from the connecting ring 24 and the cover portion 26.

FIG. 4 additionally depicts the hinge 28 of the lid portion 14. The hinge 28 connects the cover portion 26 to the connecting ring 24. The hinge 28 has a connecting ring region 40 and a cover portion region 42 that are connected by a first web 44 a and a second web 44 b. The connecting ring region 40 of the hinge 28 is disposed at or within the outer periphery of the connecting ring 24, or, put another way, connecting ring region 40 of the hinge 28 connects to the connecting ring 24 at a location no greater than a maximum diameter of the connecting ring 24. Connecting the hinge 28 to the outer periphery of the connecting ring 24 eliminates the need for a slide action within the mold to create the hinge 28 of the lid portion 14. It is contemplated that the connecting ring region 40 and the cover portion region 42 of the hinge 28 have a semi-circular shape, but other shapes may be utilized. The hinge 28 is adapted to keep the lid portion 14 in the open position once the lid portion 14 has passed a predetermined amount of opening. As such, the opening 22 remains uncovered until a user asserts a force on the lid portion 14 to reinsert the plug seal 36 of the lid portion 14 back into the opening 22.

The hinge 28 is completely disposed within the diameter or perimeter of an outer periphery of the connecting ring 24 when the lid portion 14 is in the closed position. Therefore, all of the lid portion 14 is disposed within the outer periphery of the connecting ring 24, whether at, below or above the ring's surface. When the hinge is attached at or below the ring's surface, the orientation of the lid portion 14 relative to the base portion 12 does not need to be controlled when attaching lid portion 14 to the base portion 12 via the connecting ring 24 being inserted into the securing groove 32, simplifying the assembly of the lid portion 14 to the base portion 12.

The hinge 28 is disposed at or above the level of the shoulder portion 18 of the base portion 12. The higher the hinge 28 resides above the shoulder portion 18, the greater the opening angle of the hinge 28.

Turning now to FIGS. 6-10, a closure for a fluid containing vessel 100 according to another embodiment is depicted. The closure 100 comprises a base portion 102 and a lid portion 104. The base portion 102 comprises a first generally vertical sidewall 106 that descends from a shoulder portion 108. The shoulder portion 108 has an outer periphery 110, and an inner periphery 112 (FIGS. 7-8). The first generally vertical sidewall 106 connects to the shoulder portion 108 at the outer periphery 110. A spout 114 ascends from the inner periphery 112 of the shoulder portion 108. The spout 114 terminates at a generally horizontal rim 116 (FIG. 8). The generally horizontal rim 116 has an opening 118 formed therein (FIG. 8). The opening 118 allows fluid within a fluid containing vessel (not shown) that the closure 100 is disposed on to flow out of the fluid containing vessel. The opening 118 may be sized to control the rate of fluid flow from the fluid containing vessel, such that a larger opening 118 allows a higher fluid flow rate, while a smaller opening allows a lower fluid flow rate.

As best shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the lid portion 104 comprises a connecting ring 120 and a cover portion 122 connected via a hinge 124. As shown in FIGS. 6-10, the lid portion 104 is formed from a single piece of material.

The lid portion 104 is moveable from a closed position, like that shown in FIG. 1, to an open position, like that shown in FIG. 2. In the closed position, the lid portion 104 prevents fluid from exiting the opening 118 of the fluid containing vessel as a plug seal 126 (FIG. 7) disposed on the cover portion 122 and positioned to contact the opening 118 of the base portion 102 when the lid portion 104 is in the closed position.

As best viewed in FIG. 8, the base portion 102 has a securing groove 128 formed on the shoulder 108. The securing groove 128 is adapted to receive a connecting portion 130 of the connecting ring 120 of the lid portion 104 (FIG. 9). The connecting ring 120 has a generally complimentary shape to the securing groove 128 of the base portion 102. The securing groove 128 has a securing lip 132 that the connecting portion 130 of lid portion 104 interacts with to secure the connecting ring 120 to the base portion 102. As shown in FIG. 9, the connecting portion 130 is in the form of a tab, however, it is contemplated that other geometric arrangements may be utilized to secure the connecting portion 130 of the lid portion 104 to the securing groove 128 of the base portion 102, such as a friction fit or an interference fit.

The cover portion 122 of the lid portion 102 additionally has an opening tab 134. The opening tab 134 is disposed on an opposite side of the lid portion 104 from the hinge 124. The opening tab 134 allows a user to more easily move the lid portion from the closed position to the open position.

FIG. 10 shows a plurality of tamper evident features 136 disposed between the cover portion 122 and the connecting ring 120. The tamper evident features 136 are disposed in a generally horizontal plane. The tamper evident features 136 deform and/or disconnect as the cover portion 122 of the lid portion 104 is moved from the closed position to the open position. Visual evidence that the lid portion 104 has been opened is thereby provided to a user. Therefore, the user will know if the contents of the fluid containing vessel have been accessed by opening the lid portion 104 based upon the tamper evident features 136 being deformed, or no longer being connected to both the connecting ring 120 and the cover portion 122, even if the lid portion 104 has been returned to the closed position. The tamper evident features 136 are depicted as being non-linear, such as, for example, being generally S-shaped or Z-shaped, as shown in FIG. 10. A non-linear tamper evident feature 136 contains less material near a midpoint of the tamper evident feature 136, thus making the tamper evident feature 136 more likely to fail and visually deform in that location as the lid portion 104 is opened.

FIG. 10 additionally clearly depicts the hinge 124 of the lid portion 104. The hinge 124 connects the cover portion 122 to the connecting ring 120. The hinge 124 has a connecting ring region 138 (FIG. 9) and a cover portion region 140 that are connected by a web 142. It is contemplated that the connecting ring region 138 and the cover portion region 140 of the hinge 124 have a semi-circular shape, but other shapes may be utilized. The hinge 124 is adapted to keep the lid portion 104 in the open position once the lid portion 104 has passed a predetermined amount of opening. As such, the opening 118 remains uncovered until a user asserts a force on the lid portion 104 to reinsert the plug seal 126 of the lid portion 104 back into the opening 118.

The hinge 124 is completely disposed at or within an outer periphery of the connecting ring 120 when the lid portion 104 is in the closed position. Therefore, all of the lid portion 104 is disposed at or within the outer periphery of the connecting ring 120. When the hinge is attached at or below the ring, the orientation of the lid portion 104 relative to the base portion 102 does not need to be controlled when attaching lid portion 104 to the base portion 102 via the connecting ring 120 being inserted into the securing groove 128, simplifying the assembly of the lid portion 104 to the base portion 102.

It is contemplated that the closure for a fluid containing vessel 10, 100 may be manufactured from a variety of frangible and/or elongating polymeric materials, such as homopolymers and copolymers of polypropylene and polyethylene.

It is additionally contemplated that different materials may be utilized to form the base portion and the lid portion. For example, it may be desired to have the base portion be manufactured from an opaque material, while the cap portion is manufactured from a generally transparent material, or a different colored opaque material.

While specific embodiments have been illustrated and described, numerous modifications come to mind without significantly departing from the spirit of the invention, and the scope of protection is only limited by the scope of the accompanying Claims. 

1. A closure for a fluid containing vessel comprising: a base having a sidewall, a shoulder formed at a top surface of the sidewall, a spout extending upward from the shoulder and having an opening formed in a top surface of the spout; and a one-piece lid having a ring portion, a hinge portion and a cover portion, the hinge portion connecting the cover portion to the ring portion and allowing the cover portion to move from a closed position to an open position, the hinge portion being completely disposed within an outer periphery of the ring portion with the cover portion in the closed position, the ring portion being connected to the base; wherein the cover portion covers the opening in the top surface of the spout in the closed position forming a fluid tight seal between the base and the one-piece lid.
 2. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 1, wherein the cover portion further comprises a plug seal adapted to be disposed within the opening in the top surface of the spout with the cover portion in the closed position.
 3. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 1, wherein the cover portion further comprises an opening tab.
 4. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 1, wherein the base further comprises a securing groove formed on the shoulder.
 5. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 4, wherein the ring portion further comprises a connecting portion, the connecting portion adapted to interact with the securing groove to connect the cover to the base.
 6. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 1, wherein the hinge portion comprises a ring portion region and a cover portion region.
 7. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 6, wherein the hinge portion additionally comprises at least one web portion disposed between the ring portion region and the cover portion region.
 8. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of tamper evident features disposed in a generally horizontal orientation between the cover portion and the ring portion, wherein the plurality of tamper evident features are generally straight.
 9. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of tamper evident features disposed in a generally horizontal orientation between the cover portion and the ring portion, wherein the plurality of tamper evident features are generally non-linearly shaped.
 10. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 9, wherein the plurality of tamper evident features contain less material near a midpoint of the non-linear shape.
 11. A closure for a fluid containing vessel comprising: a base portion comprising: a generally horizontal shoulder portion having an outer periphery and an inner periphery; a first generally vertical sidewall extending in a first direction from the outer periphery of the shoulder portion; a second generally vertical sidewall extending in a second direction from the inner periphery of the shoulder portion, the second generally vertical sidewall terminating in a generally horizontal rim, the generally horizontal rim having an opening formed therein; a securing groove extending from the shoulder portion, the securing groove being disposed radially between the first generally vertical sidewall and the second generally vertical sidewall; and a lid portion comprising: a connecting ring having a periphery with a complimentary shape to the securing groove of the base portion and being at least partially disposed within the securing groove; and a cover portion having a hinged connection to the connecting ring, the cover portion being movable between a closed position and an open position, the hinged connection being disposed within the periphery of the connecting ring when the cover portion is in the closed position, the cover portion being disposed over opening of the horizontal rim of the base portion; wherein the connecting ring, cover portion, and the at least one tamper evident feature being a single piece.
 12. The closure for a fluid contain vessel of claim 11, wherein the connecting ring forms a friction fit with the securing groove.
 13. The closure for a fluid contain vessel of claim 11 further comprising at least one tamper evident feature connected between the connecting ring and the cover portion, the at least one tamper evident feature having a generally horizontal orientation, wherein the at least one tamper evident feature is deformed as the cover portion is moved from the closed position to the open position.
 14. The closure for a fluid contain vessel of claim 14, wherein the at least one tamper evident feature is generally non-linearly shaped.
 15. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 11, wherein the hinged connection comprises a connecting ring portion region and a cover portion region.
 16. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 15, wherein the hinged connection additionally comprises at least one web portion disposed between the connecting ring portion region and the cover portion region.
 17. The closure for a fluid containing vessel of claim 11, wherein the cover portion further comprises a plug seal adapted to be disposed within the opening of the generally horizontal rim.
 18. A cover for a lid portion of a fluid containing vessel comprising: a connecting ring having a periphery with a generally circular shape; a cover portion connected to the connecting ring, the cover portion being movable between a closed position and an open position; and a hinge formed between the connecting ring and the cover portion, the hinge being disposed within the periphery of the connecting ring when the cover portion is in the closed position.
 19. The cover for a lid portion of a fluid containing vessel of claim 18 further comprising at least one tamper evident feature connected between the connecting ring and the cover portion, the at least one tamper evident feature having a generally horizontal orientation, wherein the at least one tamper evident feature is deformed as the cover portion is moved from the closed position to the open position, and wherein the at least one tamper evident feature contains less material near a midpoint of the tamper evident feature.
 20. The cover for a lid portion of a fluid containing vessel of claim 18, wherein the hinge comprises a connecting ring portion region and a cover portion region and at least one web portion disposed between the connecting ring portion region and the cover portion region. 